Chance Encounter-Solo Playtest-Samurai Robots Battle Royale

So I have been trying to balance real life and being on the list of playtesters for Samurai Robot Battle Royale soon to be forthcoming from Ganesha Games.   To be fair the real life stuff has been modestly impressive, but causing unacceptable delays.  I finally was able to get a game in with the only person whose schedule I could coordinate with lately, me, and a solo round SRBR commenced.

If you're familiar with the Ganesha suite of games, the theory is the same.  It keeps the quality mechanic where if you are more ambitious you can act more, but there's a greater chance of losing control of initiative.  Unlike most of their other games, where individuals have a single stat line (Quality, Combat, and Special Abilities) each location has this stat line.  If you've familiar with the Mighty Monsters from Ganesha, it's the same theory, in fact they'll integrate to allow for Pacific Rim style action.

While you will see from below, I'm using the rules for more of a Battletech feel, they're written clearly in the vein of Anime inspired conflicts.  Don't let that dissuade you however, as they include enough optional rules to bring them from the Age of Steam to Robotech, as well as Mecha vs. Army options.  Like all of Ganesha Game's products, this has a lot of options and easy to customize to the campaign you feel like, or, if you want, just have a pickup game.

The premise was simple. Two Silverbacks (lower right, poorer quality AI controlled Mechs, all activations on a 4) wandered into Captain-Regent territory while a Freelancer in his Ranger (upper left, all activations on 3s) is stretching his mynomer muscles in preparation for an upcoming challenge. All craft were generated quickly before the battle, and the points on the two sides are equal.   You'll notice three dice between each figure-this is their dice for activation and their health-as they get injured they fade to yellow and then red (except I have no yellow dice, so it's White to Red to Black), which allow for interruption by your foe if those dice fail.  The table's only 30" square, with hills and ruins blocking line of sight.  The ruin in the lower left (rotated 180 in all following photos) would serve as the locus of activity for the conflict. Colored sticks are Short/Medium/Long measuring sticks.

One other note-it's roll then declare, not declare and then hope you roll well enough, I was doing some in reverse in the playtest. 

After rolling for initiative, the victorious Freelancer Made a dash for the cover of the ruins, and promptly failed to activate to fire, passing control over to the AI Legion.

Silverback I charged, moving three times directly to the edge of the ruins.  I then checked to see if it would successfully take a shot, and if it would activate more than one time, which would allow it to make more powerful strikes.  It would need it, for though Silverbacks packed linked lasers, they were short range, and as can barely be made out due to my poor photography, they were three range bands bands away, thus -2 on the roll. So before rolling, I opted for a Surgical Strike (+2 to hit, max one damage).

Again, chalk it up to poor photography, but that's three 6s on activation, allowing for a Very Powerful(tm) shot.  Once the combat roll was complete (1d vs 1d + combat values +/- a few quick modifiers) the Silverback had seriously beaten the Ranger.  However, as it was a surgical strike, it only allowed one point of damage and the Freelancer's roll against Knockdown (the random damage effect) was weathered.

Silverback I being done, it immediately passed the dice over to Silverback II, who promptly did nothing (three failures on three dice).

Payback time.  The Ranger carries on it's Torso a L5 Missile (One Shot), which it immediately fired at close range at SB-I.

Above you can see the range band, and the two dice in the center (SBI's Red 1 and Ranger's Black 3) leave for a poor day for the Silverback.  It promptly took two points of damage, rolled for effect, and had its sensors go blind.  Ranger decided to follow up on its success, took a leg action to close the distance, and then rolled for arm activation to give a flying elbow (or, you know, a punch in the rules).

Problem is, the earlier point of damage resulted in a red die (again, yellow die in the rules, but I have no yellow dice).  It failed, allowing the blind SB-I to attempt to interrupt, and it did, lashing out and making a general fool of itself as most blind boxers might. Crisis averted, the Ranger cracked some knuckle actuators on an exhaust manifold, leaving SB-I with all Red.

By the next photo I have of the battle, SB-II has finally entered the fray, after SB-I, on a very lucky Black damage roll (lucky for the pilot of the Ranger at least) shut down. Ranger's taken a couple of pings to the armor and is starting to have some concerns.  Out of Missiles (when you've fired one of one, it's easy to keep track) he's shooting his regular lasers, with medium range, here two bands out to mediocre results.

With only one Mecha on each side, the quality difference proved telling, allowing the Ranger to maneuver out of SB-II's punishing linked short range lasers, up until the end.

The last bit of damage on SB-II is not shown, but by the end it had achieved all black (er...red in the rules) dice and failed its integrity roll...spectacularly.  Worse for wear, the Freelancer piloted his dented Ranger home, to war of the encroaching AI Legion.

Playing both sides, the game took under an hour-in part due to mulling over sections to see if they could be misinterpreted.  It was quick and easy, but the game needs a bigger table and bigger forces than what I was able to muster.  Definitely one I'm looking forward to more of once I get a chance.

One of those occasional games

///First started writing back after the Fall Season Novag Game Day.  Now as I start to work on completing it, I'm two weeks away from the Spring one.  Whoops.////

If you live in the Greater DC Metro Area, and have not linked up with NOVAG, I highly recommend it.  Good group of gamers, and yesterday they held their Fall Game Day.  Sadly I only could only stay until Noon, which I was fortunate enough considering moving requirements.

Some things came out of this.

First of all, General Quarters 3 from ODGW is actually an enjoyable game.  So far it's the best game I've seen for addressing the game vs. simulation balance for World War 1 Naval, and I understand it does the same for World War 2.  Someone at the game event was running his "Wobbly 8" scenario, with a British Fleet of Armored Cruisers and Pre-Dreadnaught Battleships fighting four ultra modern German battlecruisers.  I was doing ok, about to cross the T before I ran out of time, but only due to the absolutely dreadful luck of my foe.

So, with that in mind I was reminded of two projects which have been sitting on the way back burner.  The first was Aeronef which is, more or less, normal pre-dreadnought at 10,000 feet, and I think GC3 would capture it well and quickly with only the addition of altitude mechanics while maintaining speed of play.  For a long time I had been looking at the possibility of using Battlefleet Gothic.  No clue why, as I'm sitting her thinking about it.  It just seemed to make sense...I should probably go back and reread it to see if that core theory applies.  My books have finally returned from deep storage (and let's face it, I'm still doing a happy dance.

Project number two, and maybe more viable is the CSN vs. USN in the 1901-1905 period. However this is for another time.

This has been sitting in my drafts for too long. just some random thoughts

I have a pulse dagnabit

The new job, in short, is about two jobs. Not an excuse, rather an explanation. Mainly to Brooks, my own personal Wargaming Jimminy Cricket.  But, instead of "Conscience", his badge says "Paint Something".  And he's taller.

I'd like to say things will get better, but it won't, not for a while.

So I finally got to get some dice rolled of late.  Dux Bellorum against goodman Erik and his fine collection of beer and hospitality, with kind wife Jenny and bashful child looking on.  The phone died so no photos (I never foresaw that statement about a decade ago...but that's another story). Only optional rule in play was "no more than one wound could be avoided by leadership".  Time was tight.

Game 1-Erik's Early Wild Welsh vs. Sean's Overly Overly Enthusiastic Irish (Is there another kind).

     The Welsh were a "I have figures, let me make a last minute 5th army", and one I didn't expect to be effective frankly. Warrior Welsh vs. Warrior Irish with Chariots, with the Welsh foregoing their ambush and holding on to their Javelins.  Shockingly, and painfully, effective javelins.

    I learned a lot that first game.  Mainly I learned the optional rule of "spend one leadership point for avoiding charge" I've since found on the net.  Though I outnumbered the Welsh, I didn't out maneuver my foe and was defeated in detail.  Once I got within charge range (4 base widths, or over 5" on a 24" table for Chariots), it became a die rolling exercise, with all my forces on auto-charge.  In short the Irish were unplayable with Chariots. But not Irish without them. Not historical with them, mind you, but who lets history get in the way of a good wargame.   At this point i wasn't sure if this was a game for me.  Frankly the game didn't play like it read.  I made mistakes, i failed to take advantage on my better speed and didn't focus on one of his two rather divided flanks.

None the less...On to game 2

Game 2-45 minutes on the clock for Dux Erik's Late Romans (Imposing horses and poor infantry) vs. Theign's Sean's drunken Saxon (Mead ability, basically making them orcs).

     The time was tight, but while I was slaughtered the first game, it was a good time.  Mead is a wonderful rule for a short game (+1 offensive dice, -1 HP per unit).  So I had to unleash the Saxons.  Things played different.  The Romans were a poorer force.  Heavy on cavalry in a game in which cavalry is not decisive, and completely hamstrung by no good leadership among their infantry, trailing far behind the battle.  If it had been another game, I would not have stood a chance, and if we replayed, I'm certain Erik would have learned and I wouldn't stand a chance.

     There is one other optional rule, scouring the internet, is that supporting units add two not one die that must be considered.  I'm not sure if it should be 2 for the first and 1 for the second and later, but there needs to be better support.  Flanking is rather easy, but i guess that's the way it should be in this time and era. This is a good game to simulate the difference between Shieldwall and Warrior armies, and probably Sheildwall vs. Shieldwall (which I haven't played), but as mentioned before, for warrior vs. warrior, it needs some modifications.  This is a great sandbox rule system, good value for the money, but it needs some work in this gamer's humble opinion.

And all that said, if you're interested in the period in an approachable method, I really recommend the British History Podcast which is currently reaching the middle saxon period.  If you have issues with Liverpool FC, then avoid, but he's in the weeds on medicine, food, and warfare, bringing interesting scholarship which, if not definitive, is worth listening to.

May you roll sixes, unless I face you on the field of battle. Apparently in latin this is: Sit seni volvere, nisi in facie tua proelio.  I think I just found the new phrase for the hobby room door.